Sunday, November 27, 2011

Gilt Bar

Happy belated Thanksgiving, everyone! After spending a few days in Chicago over the holiday, my belly is now rounder, and my soul is happier. It was great to get some r&r, and one of the nice things about my trip is that I got to catch up with law school buddies Julie and Jordan. Jordan suggested we dine at Gilt Bar, and his suggestion did not disappoint!

Jordan and I immediately decided to split the pork belly entree and truffle pasta. Here's the truffle pasta:

I could eat this pasta all day. The hand cut noodles were cooked al dente, and the truffle flavor was perfection. This dish managed to be creamy but light at the same time. I could have eaten the whole bowl, but I decided to be nice and keep my promise to let Jordan have some.

I didn't really notice the cranberry beans, but the pork was super tender and fatty - just the way pork belly should be. I've also decided that I like kale in any form (I've recently taken to kale chips from Whole Foods), so the pile of kale underneath the pork made me very happy.

Julie ordered the orecchiette with spicy pork sausage & herbs.

I tried only one bite, but Julie confirmed that this pasta was solid.

Dan got the bolognese with pappardelle, charred tomato & parmesan.

The ratio of sauce to noodles was just right, the sauce was itself delicious, and the texture of the noodles was again ideal.

The table shared a few sides, too. Some brussels sprouts, for your viewing pleasure:

These were caramelized, with pork belly, maple & parmesan. I honestly couldn't taste the maple, but in general these sprouts were pretty good. Tart, fresh, and flavorful.

Next up were smashed potatoes with roasted garlic & chicken jus.

This was the only mediocre dish of the night. The potatoes were too dense/chunky, and too salty for my taste.

My favorite thing of the night was probably the blackened cauliflower side.

The menu says the cauliflower comes with "pickled red onion, capers & chili." It's a testament to how good the cauliflower is, because I didn't even notice capers... and I hate capers. All I could focus on was the beautiful burnt flavor of the cauliflower. Again, I had to fight my inner glutton to stop myself from eating this whole plate.

We were doing so well with dinner that we just had to continue with dessert. First up, mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Han would have loved this. The mint flavor tasted real and fresh, and I loved the tiny crunch of the chocolate chips.

Julie was a genius and ordered us the toasted coconut and mocha cream pie.

Sorry, this picture makes the pie look like a monster and like there are bugs all over it. In fact, it's kinda freaking me out to look at it anymore. But trust me, this pie was fantastic. The best part was the dollop of mocha cream on top. So light and fluffy. The rest of it was awesome, too. I ate it all together with a big smile on my face.

The desserts made Julie and Jordan smile, too. They're so freaking cute.

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We are BFFs, living in different cities, equipped with digital cameras, healthy appetites and a mutual adoration for food. We review restaurants from New York, Boston and elsewhere in our delicious journey through life.

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